Believe in Cincinnati gets project restarted

2:44 PM,
Dec. 26, 2013

Supporters of the streetcar project rallied at Washington Park on Dec. 1, then walked along the rails that had already been laid.

Written by

A groundswell of citizen support rose up from nowhere in just six weeks to save Cincinnati's streetcar, pressuring politicians and business leaders into last week's "Miracle on Plum Street."

"It was so well-organized, well-executed and well-populated," said Gene Beaupre, a Xavier University professor who has tracked local politics for 35 years. "I've never seen (a movement) that effective in terms of every aspect."

The grass-roots group Believe in Cincinnati was born in the Over-the-Rhine living room of sales executive Ryan Messer on Nov. 9, the Saturday after voters elected an ...